Toyota will introduce an electric version of its RAV4 SUV at the Los Angeles Auto Show, the automaker has confirmed.

In an unusual move, the announcement was posted on Twitter (
@toyota), with the firm's Twitter contributor Amy Taylor simply saying "Toyota and Tesla will debut the RAV4-EV at the 2010 Los Angeles Auto Show in November."

The development of the model was no secret, with the two firms announcing their tie-up earlier this year and the development of an all-electric RAV4 in July.

It's not even the first attempt at making the RAV4 EV, as Toyota produced a limited run of the vehicles between 1997 and 2003 - but given Toyota's dominance of hybrid models thanks to the Prius, the vehicle is expected to shake up the electric vehicle market.

Electric vehicle pioneer Tesla had already delivered a working RAV4 EV to Toyota earlier this summer, although the vehicle is not expected to hit the market until 2012.

The vehicle is likely to be one of the stars of the Los Angeles Auto Show, which traditionally hosts "green" vehicle debuts ahead of the larger North American International Auto Show in Detroit, Michigan.

In the past, it has hosted debuts for vehicles such as the Chevrolet Volt, the Mini E and the fuel-cell powered Honda HCX Clarity.